The past few years has seen a transformational shift in the way we see, wear and talk about tweed. What was once an outdated, unfashionable cloth worn only in the country became an interesting, contemporary fabric with a textured heritage and appearance. Largely responsible for the shift is Walker Slater, a Scottish tailoring and textiles specialist, which began designing tweed suits in the late Nineties and soon developed a close relationship with the Hebrides’ Harris Tweed.
By persistently pushing innovation and pioneering contemporary yarns and patterns, Walker Slater has driven tweed into the 21st Century. Its cloths are engaging, tactile illustrations of a mill that doesn’t wait around for inspiration to strike, but seeks it out in nature, literature and history.
Geographically and culturally, the brand is also inherently British, and holds British tailoring values close enough to honour them without smothering themselves with restrictions – a little rakish rule-breaking never hurt anybody, especially when it comes to rewriting the rules of getting dressed. For this very reason, in 2018 The Rake collaborated with Walker Slater on an exclusive, limited edition blazer, The Ronan. So named after the son of Brian Wilson, Chairman of Harris Tweed, the jacket was cut in an olive and grey windowpane wool tweed with a fitted silhouette, high armhole, slightly padded shoulder and pattern-matched pockets (and is available to shop here).
